Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and the American Dream Essay

Benjamin Franklin was born in Boston on January 17, 1706.

Fitzgerald’s novel is structured as an allegory (a story inside another story), the terrible death of Jay Gatsby is, by extension, the death of the American Dream.

Through his incisive analysis and condemnation of 1920s high society, Fitzgerald (in the person of the novel¹s narrator, Nick Carraway) argues that the American Dream no longer signifies the noble pursuit of progress; instead, it has become grossly materialistic and corrupt.

The monolithic equality Tocqueville saw as casting a long shadow over America gave way to more freedom instead. Howe charts the consequences: “In sum, the expansion of the market economy widened the scope for personal autonomy on a scale previously unparalleled: choice of goods and services to consume, choice of occupations to follow, choice of life styles and identities.” Americans were finding ways to become less like one another and have more influence over their lives. Ambition developed to reflect the maturation of the country. Tocqueville’s interpretation overlooked the story of Franklin and couldn’t anticipate the likes of Andrew Mellon—men whose material ambition morphed into more inspiring second acts of public service.

America is the land with the most dreamers.

This dream affects the plot and characters of many novels, and in some books, the intent of the author is to illustrate the reality of the American Dream.

Benjamin Franklin’s American Dream - Archiving Early …

Fitzgerald concludes the novel on a positive note, however, by applauding the tenacity of mankind to ceaselessly pursue our dreams and by providing a little bit of hope that maybe one day, every American citizen will be able to realize their own American Dream.

Benjamin Franklin’s American Dream ..

Throughout this book the main theme is the “American Dream”, and how the goals of society sometimes affected what the character did to accomplish their American Dream.

for those who wished to fulfill the rags to riches American Dream

Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby is a literary masterpiece that takes a fascinating look at the nature of the American dream that made its fiery inception during the American War of Independence 1776-83 when it became the central theme of the American Declaration of Independence. In short, it stated, "we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by God, Creator, with certain inalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Hap...

American Dream and Ben Franklin

In the early 1900’s all people could do is dream; however, those dreams gave many different meanings to the phrase “American dream”, and for the most part, wealth and hard work play a very large role in the pursuit of “the dream”.

of the man who genuinely represented the American dream: ..

The American Dream was a belief that emerged in the later half of the nineteenth century, that if you work hard you will achieve success and prosperity....

One of Ben Franklin’s greatest inventions was the Franklin stove.

The American Dream was sought through hard work and determination.

Out of that thinking comes the "American Dream," the idea that anyone can ultimately achieve success, even if he or she began with nothing. In "The Death of a Salesman", Arthur Miller uses the characterization of Willy Loman to represent the failure of his ideal of the American Dream. Willy’s quest for the American Dream leads to his failure because throughout his life he pursues the illusion of the American Dream and not the reality of it....

However, there is no one definition of the American Dream.

Gallery 15 Interesting Facts about Ben Franklin

Free Death of a Salesman American Dream Essays and …

History books have long recognized that Benjamin Franklin represented many things throughout his lifetime.

Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, and Arthur Miller’s drama, Death of a Salesman, both protagonists, Jay Gatsby and Willy Loman, are convinced that the way to achieve a better life is by living the “American dream”....